Aberdeen have the chance to exorcise the demons of Darvel on Friday when they travel to Stirling Albion in the second round of the Viaplay Cup.
It was nothing to do with Barry Robson, who was under-18s coach at the time, but the shock Scottish Cup exit at minnows Darvel in January has hung over the club like a black cloud.
It has been a long wait for Aberdeen to get back out on the pitch to play a lower-league side in a cup competition.
While the competition and the opposition is different, I have no doubt Barry will want to put a marker down and show this is a new Dons team with goals which do not include early exits from any cups.
The manager will want to show his side is not one with the scars of a battle which ultimately proved fatal for former manager Jim Goodwin’s career at Pittodrie.
Aberdeen have better players from one to 11 than Stirling Albion, but that’s not enough. Application and attitude is equally important.
I expect the Dons will want to race out the blocks early and try to put the cup tie to bed early.
Plenty of plaudits despite Pittodrie defeat to Celtic
They should certainly be heading to Forthbank with confidence following a much-improved display in Sunday’s 3-1 home defeat by Celtic.
You know when you play Celtic it’s going to be a difficult game and there will be long periods where you don’t have the ball.
But, to Aberdeen’s credit, their approach really forced the Hoops to change their own style and I was surprised at the number of times Celtic hit long balls.
That was due to how well Aberdeen closed them down in the game.
There was a lot to like about the performance. I really liked the look of Slobodan Rubezic at the back on his home debut, while Shayden Morris was outstanding.
Morris was a bit-part player who looked devoid of confidence whenever he took to the pitch in his first season with the club.
The contrast between that guy and the one who ran Greg Taylor ragged on Sunday was remarkable.
Upfront, Duk and Bojan Miovski showed they remain a good pairing and they combined well for Aberdeen’s’ goal.
The Dons tired towards the end, which is to be expected when you are implementing a high-press approach and there was always the risk of losing a third goal.
But I don’t mind that. I’d rather watch my team lose a game 3-1 due to them trying to force an equaliser to make it 2-2.
Judging by the reception from the Aberdeen fans after the game, I suspect the Dons support share that view.
With new signing James McGarry at the club, and Angus MacDonald on the comeback trail, I’m hoping the makeshift Dons defence can start to look a little more settled in the weeks ahead.
Friday may come too soon for MacDonald, but I’d hope we’ll see New Zealand international McGarry get some minutes this week.
County had me reaching for the record books
I spent half-time on Saturday grilling the people around me at Ross County about whether they knew what the Staggies’ record win in the top-flight was.
That’s how one-sided County’s 2-0 win against St Johnstone in Dingwall was.
Honestly, I’m not exaggerating when I say they should have been 5-0 up at half-time – and then wasted another three or four terrific opportunities in the second half.
It wasn’t half chances which went amiss either. I’m talking about one-on-ones against the goalkeeper and headers from six yards out.
I couldn’t decide whether County were that good or if the Perth Saints were that poor.
In hindsight it was probably a little of both. If I was a Saints fan, I’d be fearing the worst if that is the best they can do.
I couldn’t fault a single Staggies player.
New signing Ryan Leak was the pick of the bunch for me. He was outstanding at the back and looked like a player who had been playing there all his life, not making his debut.
His partnership with Jack Baldwin was rock solid and it augurs well for the season ahead.
It was equally encouraging at the other end of the pitch, too, as Simon Murray and Josh Sims also do so much running in the final third.
I could see Jordan White has picked up on where his team-mates are, and with him making a huge effort to match their workrate, County have a forward line which is going to cause teams problems.
It’s early days, but there is a lot to like about Malky Mackay’s team so far.
Caley Thistle need to hit the refresh button
I expect Billy Dodds and his Caley Thistle players are glad of a free weekend on Saturday as they try to hit the reset button on their season.
It has been a really tough couple of weeks for everyone associated with Caley Jags, with Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at Ayr United making it five losses in a row for the Highlanders.
All five defeats have been by one goal, which suggests Inverness are not far away, but the sense of frustration is clearly palpable at the club.
Doddsy’s dismissal from the dugout on Saturday highlights that, but with no game this week the Caley Thistle boss and his coaching staff have a chance to pause, regroup and try to iron out the flaws which are costing them points.
If they don’t then those five defeats can quickly become six or seven and that’s when the horrible questions start coming a manager’s way.
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